Australian Healthcare Week: Nurses’ Role In Reform

The central role nurses have in ensuring the health care system and workforce can keep pace with growing demands and technological change is being recognised at Australian Healthcare Week.

From 8-10 March, Australian Healthcare Week brings together over 2,000 health professionals to discuss shifts in the healthcare landscape. In particular, attendees will focus on addressing challenges to ensure operational efficiency, quality of care, patient safety and improved health outcomes.

Australian College of Nursing (ACN) Chief Executive Officer, Adjunct Professor Kylie Ward will open the Nurses and Clinicians stream of the event with a presentation on utilising and supporting nurse leaders in today’s health sector.

“When we have implemented significant change in healthcare in the past, nurses have tended to be overlooked in terms of devising solutions. This has sometimes been to the detriment of patient health and workplace efficiency,” Adjunct Professor Ward explained.

“Take clinical care in a hospital for instance, nurses are the only professionals providing 24-hour care, seven days a week. No member of the care team has a better understanding of how our healthcare facilities operate, how they could work more effectively, and what patients need.

“Making sure nurse voices are heard is a not only a role for policy and decision-makers, but for the nursing profession as a whole. We must continue to develop our nurse leaders so they are informed, capable and aspiring to take a guiding role.

“The College is committed to developing and engaging nurse leaders and I will explore this topic in my address to Australian Healthcare Week.”

Adjunct Professor Ward will also take part in the CEO Healthcare Roundtable Forum on 9 March 2017. A large group of highly-respected healthcare leaders will cover a range of topics from change management in major redevelopment projects, maximising the benefits of a digital strategy, future proofing healthcare facilities in anticipation of new models of care, and meeting patient expectations.

“I am looking forward to Australian Healthcare Week and believe those who take part will find it educative, interesting and inspiring,” Adjunct Professor Ward said. “It will be an opportunity to network with other health professionals and develop connections and knowledge to facilitate career development.”